Chapter 218 Unexpected Events
In the Meilin Courtyard, the main house door was closed again, and the lock was tightly shut.
As the sound of footsteps faded into the distance, the courtyard returned to silence.
Inside the dimly lit main room with the doors tightly closed.
The dust lingered in the air, not yet settling.
On a square table covered with a dust-proof cloth, besides extra envelopes, official seals, official robes, and other items, there was also a pot of orchids with hanging dew on it, which had been brought over from the windowsill at some point.
The clivia quietly faces the closed door in front of the octagonal table.
Everything returned to silence.
Meanwhile, the gray-haired youth who had put down his baggage and left alone strode towards Dagushan without looking back.
...
"How is he? Is he still not awake?"
In a government office, inside a heavily guarded courtyard, the door was pushed open from the outside, and a stern voice came into the room.
Upon hearing this, several young constables standing guard at the bedside of the unconscious prisoner got up and made way for him.
Yan Liulang, his hand on the hilt of his sword, walked in from outside with a solemn expression.
The young constables surrounded them, chattering amongst themselves:
"Not yet, Sixth Brother."
"Sixth Brother, ever since this vixen suddenly vomited blood and fainted last time, we've tried everything, but there's still no sign of her. Is it beyond saving?"
"What nonsense are you talking about? He was on the verge of death and bedridden for half a month before, but Master Xie saved him. He just coughed up some blood. It's not a big deal. Don't give me any bad advice."
Yan Liulang frowned slightly and reprimanded his subordinates on either side.
When not by Ouyang Rong's side, Yan Liulang's demeanor was completely different; he appeared serious and businesslike, inspiring fear and respect in his subordinates.
As for the reason for the change, it may be that the seniority gradually changed from "Little Six" and "Sixth Brother" in Ouyang Rong's mouth to "Sixth Brother" and "Sixth Master" in the mouth of his subordinates.
After inquiring about the sick prisoner's condition from the young constable, Yan Liulang frowned slightly and dismissed everyone to guard the prison in the courtyard.
Only two people remained inside the house.
Yan Liulang stood at the head of the bed, looking down at the dying Jade Cup Fairy on the sickbed.
The hands resting on the handles would sometimes clench and sometimes loosen.
He seemed to hesitate briefly.
Yan Liulang glanced out the window and nodded slightly:
"The longer we delay, the more things might go wrong. We should inform Miss Xie. It seems this matter still needs to be handled by Miss Xie. The longer we delay, the greater the risk. What if this vixen suspect dies... eh."
He looked dejected, silently reaching into his robes, where he pulled out a pale green jade pendant and muttered to himself:
"Before Miss Xie left, she instructed that if there was any emergency or change here, she should immediately smash this jade pendant, which was imbued with a trace of her spiritual energy, so that it could sense her presence from a thousand miles away and return quickly..."
I don't know how much time passed.
At the bedside where the Jade Cup Fairy lay unconscious, the figure of the blue-clad constable disappeared, and several young constables returned to their posts.
On the tea table next to the bed, a small pile of broken jade pieces had appeared at some point.
This caught the attention of one of the sharp-eyed constables, who turned his head in curiosity.
On the coffee table, the jade pendant fragments were pure white.
The verdant green has faded.
...
This official ship, which set sail from Longcheng County in Jiangzhou, was not particularly conspicuous on the Xunyang River, a section bustling with merchants.
It was certainly not as eye-catching as the magnificent fleet that had recently carried the envoys from Luoyang.
On the vast river where the wind and waves sometimes surged and sometimes receded, occasionally a boat would brush past an official vessel, attracting the attention of some passersby, at most prompting a few whispers and speculations about the rank of the boat's owner.
These murmurs were quickly dispersed by the noisy river breeze.
Travel in this era was actually quite tedious and boring, even with water transport being the fastest option. If it were by land, it would normally take several months or even half a year to complete the journey.
On the river, the morning mist had just been dispersed by the morning breeze, and the new morning sun had just risen. On the deck at the bow of the boat, a group of boatmen gathered to catch fish, chat, and joke around.
An old boatman vividly recounted how, when he was a boatman on the boat of a high-ranking official from Lingnan returning to the capital after leaving office, he overheard and witnessed the story of the official's eighteen concubines vying for his affections.
The other boatmen, with their dark complexions and rough skin from the river wind, listened with great interest.
Occasionally, a few bored maids and guards from the Plum Deer Garden who were passing by on the deck would stop to enjoy the breeze, gazing intently at the river view, while secretly gathering gossip.
Just then, the sound of a door being pushed open came from a nearby main cabin.
The boatmen, maids, and guards who had gathered around to catch fish seemed to receive some kind of signal. Their expressions turned serious, and without saying a word, they turned and left, scattering to do their own things and sticking to their posts.
They didn't even look at the location from which the door opened, as if they were very familiar with this signal.
Sure enough, a short while later, the familiar figure of the "young county magistrate" appeared on the deck and walked towards the bow of the ship.
The young magistrate, with a long sword at his waist, circled the boat once, his face indifferent and silent.
His aloof demeanor kept others at bay, causing the boatmen, maids, and guards around him to avoid speaking to him. Everyone kept their heads down and did their work quietly, as if afraid of making a fuss and attracting the attention of this handsome young official.
The official ship departed from Longcheng County and has been there for more than two days.
Everyone on the boat noticed that the county magistrate, who had asked for leave to return home, seemed to be in a bad mood, though they wondered if it was due to seasickness.
In the past two days, he has said no more than ten sentences in total.
Moreover, this county magistrate spent most of his time in the main cabin, staying indoors and seemingly engrossed in his books.
He would only come out twice a day, morning and evening, to inspect the boat with a stern face, and then bring some food back to his room.
No one dared to approach and disturb them.
Even Lady Ye, who was said to be the personal maid of this county magistrate, was not allowed to enter the main cabin even once.
Only during the brief intervals when the county magistrate went out on his morning and evening inspections, and under the guise of delivering meals, could he exchange a few words of concern and concern.
However, this county magistrate was extremely sparing with his words on this matter.
With the male host in such a state, the atmosphere on the entire ship was naturally quite serious.
The same is true now.
The county magistrate, dressed in his familiar, impeccably dressed official robes, inspected the official boat with a stern face. After standing at the bow for a while to enjoy the river breeze, he disappeared again in front of the main cabin door and continued reading behind closed doors.
Those who were secretly glancing at each other immediately showed expressions of relief, exchanged glances, and thought, "Yeah, back to slacking off. We won't be out until evening next time."
Ye Weilai, dressed in a moon-white long dress, with a jade hairpin holding up her waist-length silver hair, her small face covered by a thin white veil, carried a plate of breakfast to the main cabin.
She stood gracefully in front of the door, glanced at the tightly closed door, and whispered:
"My love, it's time to eat."
A steady voice came from inside the door: "Put it on the table outside the door."
"Yes." Ye Wei glanced at the door, then knelt down and put down her breakfast.
The silver-haired girl turned and left to instruct the maids to do their work.
What Ye Weilai and the others on the ship did not know was that Ouyang Rong was not in the main cabin at this moment.
Only one taciturn man sat upright at the table, his face serious, his right hand nervously clutching a bronze animal mask.
The man breathed a sigh of relief when he heard Miss Ye's footsteps finally fade away.
Liu Ashan lowered his head, glanced at the bronze beast mask, then at the Moonlight Longsword on the table, and shook his head with a sigh.
These past few days, he has been acting exactly as the master instructed, and so far, he has not revealed any flaws.
The Moonlight Sword was given to him by the master before he left, who said it would make his act more convincing.
As for the Mirage Mask, according to the master, after he collected its energy, he manipulated it, and Liu Ashan can use it temporarily now. As for outsiders, even if they get their hands on it, they can't use it.
Even so, Liu Ashan did not wear the mask all the time. He only wore it briefly when he went out to patrol in the morning and evening, and took it off immediately as soon as he returned to the cabin.
Because he had heard the master say that this item needed to be replenished with a special spiritual energy that only the master possessed.
Therefore, Liu Ashan thought that he should save as much spiritual energy as possible and only wear it when necessary. After all, the journey was still long, and what would happen if he wore it for a long time and exhausted his spiritual energy?
Recalling Miss Ye's tone just now, Liu Ashan nodded and muttered to himself:
"Master is indeed wise and thoughtful. He gave Miss Ye some instructions before boarding the ship. After boarding, I made an excuse to stay at home and read, and Miss Ye didn't suspect anything. She probably thought it was because Master was in a bad mood..."
Liu Ashan was initially a little flustered, but after observing her for the past two days, he found that Miss Ye remained calm, had a normal routine, and showed no signs of anything amiss.
Liu Ashan rubbed his rumbling stomach, then bent down and put on his mask.
Immediately, the "young county magistrate" in official robes stood up from the table, walked to the door and listened carefully. Taking advantage of the fact that no one was passing by outside, he quickly opened and closed the door and took in a plate.
"Is it longan and lotus seed eight-treasure porridge again? Just like yesterday and the day before... It seems that Master likes to eat it. Miss Ye is indeed very considerate to Master."
Liu Ashan glanced at the hot porridge and pickled vegetables on the plate with slight curiosity, nodded and muttered something.
He wasn't a picky eater, and soon buried his head in his food with a happy expression.
To be honest, Liu Ashan had never had such a refined breakfast before. Only scholars like Ouyang Rong could afford to eat such things. He was just a rough man, but now he was fortunate enough to enjoy it.
After wolfing it down, Liu Ashan looked a little guilty.
About half an hour later, right on time, he quickly opened the door and placed the tray on the table outside.
After doing all this, Liu Ashan looked back at the empty room. He couldn't understand the book, so he was naturally bored. He went to his bed and went to sleep.
Unaware that Liu Ashan, who was being tossed about by the rocking of the boat, had only just placed the plate outside the door when a slender figure in a white dress appeared.
Ye Weilai looked down at the bowl of porridge that had been completely eaten, then picked up the plate and turned to leave.
Whether it was due to the rocking of the ship or not, Ye Weilai's body swayed and she stumbled away.
On the deck, a maidservant who had been bumped by her looked timid and apologized first. Then, the maidservant paused, looked up curiously at the silver-haired girl's retreating figure, and muttered something under her breath...
In his dazed state, Liu Ashan vaguely heard a "bang bang bang" knocking on the door, accompanied by a commotion outside:
"Oh no, sir! Lady Ye has disappeared! We've searched three times but haven't found her anywhere!"
Liu Ashan suddenly woke up, jumped out of bed, rushed out halfway, turned back, put on his mask, grabbed his long sword, and burst out of the door.
Where is this?
Liu Ashan frowned and pointed to the bustling dock where the official ships were currently docked for rest and repair.
"It's Xunyang Ferry in Jiangzhou," the boatman whispered.
Liu Ashan stared at the bustling dock, lamenting with regret:
"Oh no! Miss Ye has seen through me and run away from the boat to go back to find the master?"
Ignoring the boatmen and maids who were stunned and confused upon hearing this, Liu Ashan immediately set off to rush off the official boat and chase after the person like searching for a needle in a haystack.
But then, an old boatman approached with a slightly strange look in his eyes and said:
"Sir, we've found him."
Liu Ashan was taken aback. After asking a few more questions, he turned around and rushed towards the lowest cargo hold.
Upon entering, and looking closely, I indeed spotted a solitary, slender, silver-white figure among a pile of luggage.
Ye Weilai leaned against a large wooden box, her delicate body curled up in a ball, her loose silver hair hanging to the ground.
Liu Ashan glanced at the large wooden box that looked somewhat familiar; it seemed to contain the master's books, clothes, and bedding.
"You..." he hesitated, then stopped.
“You really aren’t my love.” Ye Weilai suddenly choked up as she spoke.
Tears streamed down her face as she shook her head vigorously at Liu Ashan, who was still struggling to move.
“Master dislikes longan and dried longan, and doesn’t like eating longan and lotus seed eight-treasure porridge. You ate it for three days straight, leaving the bowl clean, but you didn’t react at all. Besides… when Tanlang said he wanted to go back to his hometown together, I already guessed it…”
Liu Ashan:......
He pursed his lips, remained silent for a long time, then removed his mask, bowing his head in shame: "Miss Ye, it's me..."
Ye Weilai showed no surprise. She curled up, hugged her knees, and buried her head, as if she had already cried intensely. Her slender shoulders were still trembling, and her voice was hoarse.
"Don't worry, Brother Shan, I won't run away... I won't sneak back again."
Liu Ashan silently breathed a sigh of relief, then looked at the silver-haired girl with tears streaming down her face, and was immediately at a loss for what to do.
He turned around, borrowed a handkerchief from the maid, and handed it to her.
Ye Wei looked away, ignoring her gaze, and tightened her arms around herself.
Only then did Liu Ashan realize that Miss Ye was carrying a pile of books that the master had read and the scholar's robes he had worn.
At this moment, Ye Weilai looked down at the crumpled books and clothes in her arms, her small face haggard and miserable, and she murmured in a daze:
“He’s leaving, I know it. Tanlang is leaving, he can’t lie to me… He’s going to a place he’ll never come back to, Brother Shan. Tanlang is leaving so resolutely.”
She was both laughing and crying.
Liu Ashan asked in confusion, "Isn't the master busy with promotions and transfers? Why would he leave? Miss Ye, have you misunderstood something?"
"No, promotions and titles don't interest him as much as the orchids on the windowsill. You don't understand him..."
"But where is the master going?"
“I don’t know where he’s going, but I know that Tanlang is leaving. I can tell that he’s preparing to say goodbye to us forever. I thought he would come after sending me back to Nanlong, but I never expected it would be Brother Ashan who came…”
Ye Weilai murmured softly, her white-haired head tilted slightly as she gazed out the porthole, her small face blank. Suddenly, she asked:
"Brother Ashan, could you do me one last favor?"
"Wh...what kind of help?" Liu Ashan asked, looking troubled.
Ye Weilai wiped her face and eyes with the back of her hand, then looked up with a joyful and carefree smile:
"Brother Shan, don't worry, I'll listen to you and not run away. I'll go back to my hometown to pay respects to our ancestors. But Brother Shan, my heart is aching so badly. It's so strange, it hurts so much. Could you... could you go back to Longcheng right now and try your best to stop him? Your words are more effective than mine, okay? Brother Shan, I beg you..."
Liu Ashan and the girl with a few strands of silver hair on her lips exchanged a silent glance.
I don't know how much time has passed.
A soft sigh echoed in the cargo hold. Liu Ashan lowered his head, first solemnly putting away the bronze mask, then nodded and murmured:
"Alright. Miss Ye, just go back home as you've been told. I'll turn back now. Don't worry, maybe you've misunderstood the master."
"Did you misunderstand him...?"
Ye Wei looked out the window, tilted her head and smiled:
"The person you love most, the one you cherish as your life, no longer wants you, but you can no longer disobey his orders. You have to obediently walk away and watch him embark on a journey that may never return. There is nothing more painful in the world than this. Brother Shan, have you ever experienced this feeling?"
She pointed her trembling index finger to her heart and asked with a laugh.
Liu Ashan shook his head.
Ye Weilai hugged her knees and buried her face; Liu Ashan solemnly cupped his hands in greeting:
"Since Miss Ye has listened to my advice and returned to her hometown, I'll be going now."
Ye Weilai didn't reply. She turned her head and stared blankly at the waves outside the window, murmuring as if in a dream:
"Hurry, hurry, it's going to be too late..."
(End of this chapter)
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